The Maddest of All
|next = }} Ex-serviceman Felix Underwood (Peter Bramhill), a mental patient at the Danvers Retreat, dies suddenly in the street. Events take an unusual turn when he returns to life two days later at his church committal. Father Brown assists Inspector Sullivan to discover the reason for the resurrection, and gets himself committed for mental problems. Synopsis Inspector Sullivan's first day on the job starts with the mysterious death of Felix Underwood. He was witnessed staggering through the village in a patient's gown before collapsing in Sullivan's arms, his final words being "murder". Sullivan interviews Felix's wife Dorothy with Father Brown providing sympathetic assistance. She explains that her relationship with her husband had deteriorated since the war due to the shellshock he suffered and the grief of the death of his brother in the conflict. She sent him to Danvers Retreat, a psychiatric hospital for veterans with shellshock. Brown goes to Danvers Retreat where he meets Dr Henshaw and the overzealous Nurse Farrow. Dr Henshaw believes Felix left whilst sleepwalking. With the Doctor distracted by the arrival of Sullivan, Brown sneaks into his office and witnesses a patient, Sarah Mulgrew leaving a note on a wall. Upon retrieving the note, Brown discovers the note links to the passage "Romans 10:10". At Felix's committal, the ceremony is interrupted by knocking and muffled cries coming from the casket, upon opening the lid, everyone present is stunned. Felix Underwood is alive. The initial belief that Felix was resurrected is very quickly dismissed by Father Brown due to the cuts on Felix's hands, fresh when he "died", which now show signs of healing. Brown also provides Sullivan with the details surrounding the release of another patient at Danvers Retreat, Benjamin Pennington who was discharged the same day Felix escaped. Sullivan begrudgingly brings Brown along to Danvers. With Dr Henshaw and Nurse Farrows, they go to question Sarah only to be led to a disused well by the biblical notes she has left for them. Inside the well, they discover Benjamin's body. Brown finds Sarah and begins to ask her about Benjamin and Felix, she explains that Benjamin took her place for something, however he is interrupted by Nurse Farrow before she can explain. Sullivan is forced to ask Brown to leave, so he fakes a manic episode in order to be admitted as a patient, with Sullivan's begrudging acceptance. Back at the village, Felix has flashbacks to the Retreat and Benjamin, and he runs away. Mrs McCarthy comes to visit Brown at the Retreat and uses her to obtain the key to Sarah's room. That night, he searches the Retreat and discovers a hidden, shattered mirror he sneaks off to her room, only to find her sedated. He is followed into the room by another patient, Jeremy, who leads him to a laboratory, there, Brown discovers various psychoactive drugs and dose charts, as well as a audio recording of one of Felix's treatments. However he is discovered by Dr Henshaw and Nurse Farrow. Brown is sedated by Nurse Farrow and strapped to a table. Dr Henshaw reveals he has developed a chemical formula capable of forcing a complete mental reset of a patient, side-effects include reducing breathing and heart-rates to undetectable levels like with Felix and memory loss, with Nurse Farrow revealing herself to be a successful trialist of the procedure. Dr Henshaw explains he drugged Felix so as to imagine Benjamin as the German soldier who killed his brother to forgive him. However, Felix became enraged and attacked, breaking the mirror and stabbing Benjamin with a shard, cutting his hand in the process. Henshaw and Farrow then gave him the formula and went to dispose of Benjamin's body, however the original formula was very slow acting, allowing Felix to escape. Dr Henshaw reveals that his main aim with the formula is to heal Jeremy, who Brown has realised was Dr Henshaw's son. The doctor had been drink-driving and crashed his car, killing his wife and leaving Jeremy brain-damaged. Brown manages to convince Dr Henshaw that his actions have caused too much damage and he halts giving Brown the formula and turns himself in. At the police station, Sullivan reiterates his insistence that Brown stops meddling, though that will prove fruitless with the investigative priest.